Rites of Passage...
Parts 1 through 4 combined
~Jade Swiftblade



['Parts' of story scattered, via writters request.] Rites of Passage (Part Three)

~Jade's Meditations had continued through the night and the next day. Hermind wandering the annels of the past as though through a gigantic library. Each book held chepters. Each chapter held paragraphs. And each paragragh held the stories that were her past and that of her clan. She coudl pick up any book and read. It was open to her. She was Matriarch and she had the key to the vastness of the Swiftblade legacy as her mother had before her. Others of her clan could read fromt eh library as well but for them some books were closed.. some pages written in an obscure language thier eyes and minds could not percieve or hope to understand. The Identity of Ophelia, Da'Nee, Jade, and Karoly's father was one of those.~

"What was Father like, Jade?" ~Karoly had asked once~

"Our father no longer matters, Karoly. We do. He is dead dont worry about him... ok?"

~Truth be told Jade had wanted to save her sister from the pain of the memories. The memories of how thier father would raise his hand to Mother at the slightest "infraction". Often Jade would find her mother crying in the kitchen of thier hut silently. She had not prepared the meat correctly so he backhanded her. Another time she had spoken up in defense of Ophelia and she had been beaten. Jade and Ophelia had helped bring her back to ehr health and continuie n her duities. The worst part of all of this was the clan's look on women.~

~Many other clans praised the Swiftblades for thier honor for the Matriarch, the story keeper, historian of the clan. If they only knew....~

~The women of the Swiftbade clan were nothing to the men but slaves. In every way. They were to fetch water, raise the children, tend the gardens, cook, clean, sew. The list was endless. While the older women toiled the men hunted or forced the younger girls and women to "entertain" them. Jade shook her head, trying not to allow those memories to return... But failing utterly.~

~The little Jade had watched her older cousin, Saminah, who was perhaps 16 at the time, be drug across the village by her hair and set to dance for the overly eager men. Her clothing ws torn from her body as she danced, tears rolling down her cheeks as her soft flesh was exposed. She stopped dancing as she covere herself runnign with all her might wanting only to get away.... ~

~Jade had hid herself in the shadows, not wishing to be seen as she would be forced to admit to her cousins actions, therefore condeming her...~

~It did no good. Saminah was caught up by Cason's strong arms and bound at the wrists, Saminah's sobbing became worse. She knew her fate... In fear of the attention she was about to recieve she reacted without thinking, sinking her teeth into Cason's arm, blood covering her chin as he dropped her and the flesh was rendered from his limb. Cason's scream of pain and flinching hesitation was all that Saminah needed. She took off like a bat out of hell, running at her top speed away.. towards the outskirts of the village. And the safety of another clan....~

~But even as she saw her freedom, an arm caught around her waist, forceing a gasp from her. What ensued would remain in Jade's memory for her entire life.~

~The other girls, young and teen were gathered, Jade amung them, as the men tied Saminah's arms to a pole above her head and ripped off what was left of her clothes, leaving her soft unmarred back exposed.~

"This is what happens when you attack one of your superiors!" ~Jade's Father spoke these words, looking directly to Jade and her sister Ophelia.~

~Then cason stepped forward, a whip in hand. He unfurled it ont he ground and snapped it once in the air off to the right of Saminah's body, causing her sobbing and tremblign to increase. Cason raised his powerful arm,still dripping crimson blood...~

"This is what happens to disobedient..."

~The whip sung through the air, crashing against and into Saminah's flesh as if to puncuate the word "disobedient". Saminah screamed in agony as the leather connected with her back, leaving a long .. ugly.. bleeding wound across her back. Cason pulled the whip back again, raising his arm...~

"And ungrateful..."

~Cason sent the whip against the girl once more to puncuate the crime, the flesh again tearing apart and bleeding even as another scream was torn from Saminah's throat. The girl sobbed and cried as she hung by her wrists, powerless to stop the assault.~

"Wretched!"

~A strike~

~A scream~

"Little!"

~Another st rike another stripe another scream this one hoarse as her throat was made raw.~

"WENCHS!"

~The final strike landed across the former ones making a tic-tac-toe of Saminah's back. The girl went limp as she passed out from the pain and Jade turned tail and ran, her tears blinding her, literally cursing her sex. Why did she have to be born a female? One of the hated?~

~She stumbled and fell and did not rise, merely layed there her head on her arms sobbing...~

~Hours later Jade awoke to find she'd fallen asleep in the forest. Awoke to the sound of footfalls behind her. Though she didnt have the tme to spin, as her father took hold of her by the hair dragging her to her feet.~

"You left the gathering without perimission, brat."

"I.. I'm sorry daddy.. "

~The hand slammed into her cheek as the grip on her hair was released, the impact sending her to the ground once more, holding her slowly bruising face.~

~That had been all she had had to endure that night. Her father had thought that seeing Saminah whipped was enough for Jade.~

~Jade PUSHED with all her might against the vision and her mind snapped back to the present. She was sitting cross legged in her ship. Safe.. many years later. The Jedi master lifted her hand and gazed upon it only to find she was shaking.~

~Putting that mental book back ont eh shelf she marked it in her 'library'. Marked it as forbidden for any other Swiftblade. The now was now. There was no reason to remember a past of pain and hatred.~

"What was Father like, Jade?" ~Karoly had asked once~

"Our father no longer matters, Karoly. We do. He is dead dont worry about him... "





Rites of Passage (Part 1)



~Somewhere in Space~

~Space.... the utter blackness was overwhelming to some.. to others it was a comfort.. safe in thier ships or staring at the stars space was home..... just as it was home for Jade Swiftblade and her nieces and nefews..... how could she raise so many? if not for Jadey's help she couldn't do it. Kallista and her twin.. they were Karoly's children.. born of a rape that would never have happened if Jade had raised her sister correctly. But instead she had been too full of anger and hatred and fear.... ~

~Anger at her uncle for killing Da'Nee..... Hatred for the pathetically lucky jedi who could just .. live thier lives in harmony.... love and respect that ran like a river from thier souls came up short in the heart of that young girl.. so long ago.....fear.. yes fear had played a large part in it. She had feared her own powers .. her own anger.. She had feared the strong sith.. they could after all end her life.... how could she face up to such an opponent?~

~As a child.. barely older than Janli was now... Jade had played with her brother, Da'Nee, he had been so happy and caring and loveing towards her.. something she had never had before...even her father hated her because she had her mothers eyes and her mother's smile.. He hit her when he was mad, beat her when he was drunk... and all the terror and anger and hatred towards him boiled inside of her..... ~

~Her uncles had praised her father for his mistreatment, it gave her power they said.. it gave her anger they said.. and anger was power... at least to them. Jade had only wanted the love she saw others getting from thier parents... the love she got from Da'Nee..~

~Only later had she learned that her older brother had been a Jedi Knight.~

~One day she had been with her brother at the stream. He was teaching her little tricks in The Force. Lifting rocks and such and it was great fun. Playing with her brother by the stream... ~

~Memory flashes as the Jadeof the now, the Jedi master draws the Force aroundher to face her past.....~

~Brother and sister ran giggling down the path from thier small village towards the stream... Truthfully the "stream" was a river filled with strong undertows and Mud Snakes long eel like creatures that like to yank a person under the water, drown them, fill thier bodies with a kind of poison that allows them to digest anything... even eachother...~

~They ran down the path laughing and giggling..... Jade was nine.. Da'Nee sixteen.~

"Haha! Da'Neeeee! You'll never catch me! I'm a Krath Princess!"

"We'll see about that!"

~That mischevious grin of Da'Nee's.. that is something Jade will never forget... Jedi Master Jade's heart swells as she remembers her carefree loving brother.. .. the scene continues to play before her minds eyes...~

~Da'Nee leapt and caught hold of Jade and the two of them went tumbling into the water. But Jade was never afraid.. she had Da'Nee and Da'Nee would protect her... The young Jedi Knight levetated the two of them up out of the water and onto a rock with Jade smiling ear to ear.~

"The first rule of being a Jedi, Little Padawan, is ALWAYS trust int he Force."

~But had she trusted inthe Force? The Jedi Master frowned slightly. No she had not ... it had taken a while before she had ever touched the force again... by that time she had been so full of anger and hatred....she shakes her head and allows the vision to continue...~

~Suddenly Da'Nee's calm and loving .. impecable features had furrowed and he looked up, his blue eyes searching.. his blonde hair shimmering in the filtered sunlight. The little nine year old Jade had looked up wonderingly, and Da'Nee had shoved her into some bushes.~

"Stay here little padawan."

~That had been the first and only time she had ever felt fear with her brother.. he had never shoved her anywhere like he had just then. but she stayed hidden.....~

~Soon.. all too soon, her uncles barelled down the path, Da'Nee moved to sit ont he rock just before they came... and though jade was hidden, she was far from safe. One of her cousins found her, came up behind her and grabbed her arm, dragging her into the clearing as well.~

~Jade's uncle took hold of her and snarled, throwing her away from himself. The little girl's body bnced off a tree and slumed to the grass.. unable to help fight only able to wwatch and struggle to stand... the pain was intense. Her fear was stronger.....~

"JADE!" Da'Nee cried out and took a step forth to try to help her.... but an arm came violently across his chest, stopping his motion.. twas the uncle that did it.....

"You will never teach those Jedi ways again, Da'Nee!" her uncle spoke as he ignited his lightsaber, the blood crimson blade like flame to Jade's stomache which was doing flips from the fear.

~As little Jade struggled to stand up again. having at least a sprained ankle and wrists, possiby a torn shoulder...cracked a few ribs... Da'Nee was up agaisnt the best fighters inthe village.. they were armed.. Da'Nee was not...the boy held his own for as long as humanly possible but as he began to tire and her other reletives grew in thier anger, ... he made a simple mistake of ducking when he sould have rolled and as he came back up her couin slashed him from left shoulder to right hip....... ~

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!" Jade's scream echoes in her mind even today as she felt the shock wave of her brother's death... felt his pain... the body fell to the ground the two halves falling to the ground ...Jade's eyes had filled with tears and her heart with fear as her uncle approached her again, picking her up by the throat...~

~The hand tightens choking off her only hope for breath... her eyes fill with fear as her uncle glares into ehr eyes~

"Jade, i cannot believe you have the guts to disappoint me in this way. Foolish child. Your brother has paid for his mistake. What is your choice.. the rubbish Da'Nee spoke or the true path of the Swiftblades. SPEAK!!!!"

~Something snapped inside of her and she just glares at her uncle as he releases her enopgh for her to gaso for air and breath...and speak....~

"What Da'Nee spoke is true! Youare evil! Sith are evil!"

~This angered the man...He screamed in rage as he threw her as hard as he could.. even using the Force int he act... Jade's body slammed against a tree, snapping her head against a rock as she fell.... Fell into Darkness....~

~Yes, Jade thinks to herself int he here and now, I fell into Darkness in a very literal way.... She entered and she remained. Then she left. It was simple though it did not seem that way at the time. And the path that brought her through her life's journey was full of twists and turns. Bumps and forks. Hatred. Love. Dark. Light. Danger and Safety.~





Rites of Passage (Part Two)



~Jade's mind wanders once more through the force as the vision of Da'Nee's death fades and is replaced by a later memory. Jade is older now. Barely out of her teens. She sits atop a large boulder, watching a Jedi Master and his apprentice.~

~At this time Jade was a young Sith but had strong feelings of the light. Her younger sister, karoly was one source of light in the young girl's life. Banished from her clan as a heretic when her older brother Da'Nee died, she had wandered the spaceports and clans of her homeworld, searching for a place to belong. But all she had ever found was an angry voice and a raised fist. She had given up the thought of being wanted. Love was not for her she had seen that.~

~When Da'Nee had died, jade had seen her world destroyed. Her uncle had found it entertaining to beat the little 9 year old Jade until she was bruised and bloodied, then to banish her for her 'crimes' against Clan Swiftblade. As though seeing her brother murdered before her eyes was not punishment enough. Even now, after so many months and years of training she still carried the scars of that beating.~

"I carry the scars as a reminder of Da'Nee," she tells herself.

~Now she watches this Jedi master as he trains his apprentice. The girl is like Jade is a way, young, and full of the Force. Though as Jade watched the girl more and more she could see the differences were staggering. The girl had never been beaten, never sen a death, never seen the struggle or felt the darkness. Jade had constantly rolled the idea around in her mind. And all it brought her was more anger. More hatred for this girl that was so lucky. But Crudoss,the Jedi Master, saw something in Jade that no one had seen since Da'Nee.... He saw the light. The love for Karoly and Da'Nee and Jade's eldest sister, Ophelia.~

~Now Ophelia was another story all together. She was the Eldest of Jade's immediate family. Ophelia, then Da'Nee was born, then Jade herself and Karoly ...There may have been others.. younger ones.. inbetween ones.. Siblings that Jade was not aware of. By the way her father chose wives and sl;ept around.. it was an undisputed fact.. There were probobly half brothers and sisters all over the blasted galaxy.~

~Jade snapped herself back to the present as Crudoss approached her. He offerd a caring heart. A loving soul. Training in the light. What else could Jade have wanted? Nothing. And that was the truth. However, it was not ordained to come to pass. For a Dark Jedi also had his eye ont he promising young woman. Nalex and his siter Nalia plotted and planned for weeks oh how to obtain the sith turned jedi as thier own. Soon the chance was presented and Nalex snagged Jade from the streets.~

~She awoke, bound, sitting slumped in a chair with Nalex and Nalia watching her. After the teachings that Master Crudoss had given to her through his calm and kindly council, Jade employed that along with what she had learned from living on the streets all her life. A ruse.~

"My daggers... that's all.. i swear.. one in my boot.. one in my jacet.. yea i swear Nalia tha's all of them." even though she kept her hair up in it's bun roll with another weapon, no one questioned it. Jade liked it that way.

~Her appremticeship with Nalex was just as violent and insulting, Hate Filled and disturbing, as her life with her Clan had been. The Dark Jedi locked her into a room, bound, with no weapons, no way to defend herself except through the force. The only other thing in the room was a half starved, half crazed vornskr that wanted nothing else than to rip her limb from limb.~

~Jade kicked with all her might, using the force and her fear and anger to add to the power of her strike. Finally breaking it's jaw, killing the pathetic creature.~

~Nalex Acted as though he cared. Nalex offered her power. The darkness whispered to her soul and called to her. It attached her young heart to even the abuse Nalex put her through.pain caused anger and anger gave sway to hatred and hatred.. that was the purest form of power the dark side could offer. And so with each bruise. With each cut. With each attack the Dark Side was embedded further into her soul.~

~Jade had been forbidden from contact with her friends. Nalex knew tht they could turn her back to the light. But one day Jade snuck out. Searching for her sister. But Crudoss stopped her, saying she had betrayed them Jade threw her saber across the small room tears in her eyes...She had only wanted to see her sister again.... The young pilot had always been able to teach Jade something. Simply by being. This time, however, she came up against Crudoss, who swore she had betrayed them.~

~Her saber out of reach, her best friend accusing her of treason, she spread her arms in surrender~

"Then kill me."

~Crudoss ignited his saber, watching the new sith apprentice in thier midst, bringing his blade own ever so slowly until it was left buzzing like a mad hornets nest beside her ear. All it would take is a single flick of the wrist to destroy her. To Destroy the sith and the darkness within her. Such was right after all. Or was it? Crudoss faltered. The blade missed Jade's neck completely... missed her whole body.. and took off the corner of the table...~

~Later Crudoss said~

"I could never hurt or hate you Jade...."

~Unfortunately, when Jade returned, she found Nalex there waiting for her. ~

"This is the last time you betray me, Jade!"

~The strike to the back of her head was as unexpected as it was effiscient. Jade Fell to the floor unconscious.~

~A few hours later she awoke tied to a chair. Her vision was far from normal and the back of her head was matted with blood. As moments passed and Crudoss arrived with Jade's other Jedi friends, Nalex's plot became clear. Jade was merely bait.... for Crudoss...~

~Nalex cut ehr loose and held her by her wrists. By the way ehr vision split and the exhaustion she felt, Jade knew she had been drugged. The next was a blur to Jade's mind, though she remembers the shouting and the bite of Nalex's dagger as he sliced open her wrists. She had cried out with the pain and surprise, sinking to hre knees, cradling her freely bleeding wrists.~

"You want her? you can have her dying body!"

~Nalex took flight from that place even as Crudoss ran to the weakening Jade's side... reaching out to heal her.. give her strength. Still today, Jade carries faint scars from the dagger.~

~That was the beginning of the fall.....~





Rites of Passage part 4



~Jade stepped through the ruins of the Temple of Adonai.... Slowly, she takes in the force .. slowly she takes in the destruction. Many had hated Adonai and His followers. Still, the followers of Adonai woudl aid the 'haters', giving them food, drink, any aid they could. Yet this was how they were repaid. Thier temples destroyed, thier people killed.~

~All that remained of the temple was a few lone pillars that had survived the bombing and the central shell of the main alter room. The Jedi Master's hand reached up to touch one of the few pillars that still stood at the entrance of the temple's stone shell. She could feel the power of Adonai.. the powers of the Force..were strong in this place.. A place of love and worship, friendship and laughter. Even reduced to the smoldering ruins that it wsa now, the walls and alter held the memories of that love and light.~

~Jade neared the alter and she gazed upon it. Upon the markings enscribed into it's ebony and golden surface. The elaborate ivy and in the very center. The very symbol of love and hatred combined. A cross. Used in ancient times to kill 'criminals'. Many knew the stories well.~

~As Jade's fingers reached forth, tracing the outline of that cross, starting at the upper left and moving around to the right, until her finger came back to it's point of origin......Suddenly Jade's head and mind exploded in unexpected pain. Yet she was alone in the temple... A flash of light and suddenly she stood before a man of darkness. He chuckled dangerously and moved in a blur. So fast Jade was unable to predict or react. The manlashes out towards her chest with a force push, shoving her backwards against the cool stone wall. His body rushing with hers reaching to grasp her wristswith his powerful hands.~

~This man was made of complete darkness. His eyes glowed darkly with the powers of the evil Jade herself had once obeyed. His cloak was of deepest ebony as was his face, she realized. For the man wore a cloak and cowel that concealed his visage from her preying eyes. Though his outward appearance was enough to convince any of his darkness, what lay uon his blackened heart was even darker.~

~Jade's body, tense from the surprise of the Dark Man in this Temple of Light, she absorbed the impact of her back against the wall, keeping her head away from it totally. Her wrists grasped in the titanium grip she turned a defiant eye to the Dark Man. Summoning the powers of the light she allowed it to fill her very soul.~

~The man sensed the drawing of power and pushed with his mind, demonstrating the degree of advanced training he possessed which dwarfed Jade's power, no matter how much she possessed this man possessed more..... He *pushed* on her resolve. She fought with all ehr strength, all her love, her light. Yet somehow he still found the dark nub in her mind, the dark stain in the fabic of her soul. He found and brought it to surface as a bloated body floats to the surface of the waters, so rose her Dark past...~

~The images flashed before her eyes...~

~She was Suddenly in the Grand Audience chamber of Foe Raker Gilkane, her sister, karoly kneeling before him. Jade stepped forth crying out NO!!!!!! as the Dark Justice Sliced the girl's hand from her wrist. Karoly's pain hit her again, like a blow to her stomache. The sickening pain and shock of losing her hand was awful.~

~Jade leaped forward, taking her sobbing sister into her arms, pulling her back away fromt eh Evil man that now swung at young Karoly's head, missing by centemeters as Jade pulled her back with all the strength and speed she could muster... ~

STOP!!!!! ~Jade had screamed~ Take me instead!

~Foe Raker had halted his attack and looked to Jade, pausing. His eyes burned with the powers of the darkness, the hatred he bore for Karoly. This was all because she had talked back to the Dark One. Karoly had been upset, in pain, scared and had told Foe Raker off.. and now.. it loked as though she would die for the infraction. But the Dark One stopped his assault, his eyes turning to Jade, boring into her soul....THen.. suddenly.. He laughed.~

"Very well Swiftblade! You shall be my SLAVE."

~Jade's eyes went wide, turning to Karoly.. As her eyes met the site of her younger sister curled and sobbing in her arms, Jade's resolve hardened. Liting her eyes to Foe Raker she nodded, sealing the pact. Karoly was taken from Jade's arms, brought to the Jedi Knight Kalenrat.~

~Jade on the other hand, was brought to Foe's house, spending the next few months as slave to the Dark Man.. somewhere along the way she was branded with his crest.. her left shoulder still bears it.~

~A flash and she is in her sleeping chamber.. along with the other slaves. Jade sits up in bed, her eyes wide her breathing short, tears stinging her cheeks.... the sense of death was overwhelming. And Jade was in histerics. One of the members of the blood line of Gilkane found her like that. Crying her eyes out into her pillow, unconsoleable in her grief.~

~The next day she was brought before Foe Raker. She fell to her knees as anything less would mean death.... Jade's heart and soul had hardened, hatred in her heart for the mant aht killed Karoly.. Sith Lord Qui Gon Jinn..... She saw all and felt all through her sister's eyes and now her heart burned with a cold that matched that of the dead corpse that was Karoly.~

"Jade...."

"Y...y.es Master..."

"You're free. Go collect the body of your sister."

~The words spoken once again in her mind she is flung back tot he present, pinned against the wall arms spread wide in a mock crucifix. She stared at the mana nd realized that her flashbacks were his fault. He had forced her worst times that she had buried to surface.... He was indeed a formidable foe...~

"Now do you understand?" ~His voice boomed in her ears.~ "You cannot defeat the Darkside. You will give in..................."

"I will not hate you."

"Ahh but you will Jade of Swiftblade. You will. For I will make you live out the past of your so called 'God'."

~Jade has no time to react as snakes of Sith Lightning race through his hands, and into her wrists. As she convulses in his grasp, trying to keep silent, not not cry out in pain...he concentrates on his grip of her, slowly backing away, yet still holding her with his will pinned to the wall. Arms out, feet straight down, one crossed over the other. Fear races through her as the snakes hold her to the wall, fear and pain though she battles with him, with her light, she feels the strength seeping from her body~

~Jade feels a sudden pain in each wrist and as she turns her head involuntarily to investigate, her brown eyes widen seeing and sensing the nails of pure Darkside that touch her wrists and feet, then with a cruel jab they plunge into her flesh.~

~A scream sounds in the temple and it takes Hade a few moments to realize... it emits from her. The cry of pain ripped from her throat as a child is ripped from his mother's arms by a pirate. The pain is incredible and she tries to reach for the powers fo the light.,. the powers she possesses as a Jedi Master to shunt away the pain as though it were so much chaff. But suddenly the Force is no longer there for her to touch... as if the Dark Man has taken all the light and aborbed it into his black hole of a heart.~

~The tears come to Jade's eyes and she is powerless to stop them. The pain of the nails as she is stapled to the wall and the loss of the Light of the Force cause her tears. The only thing left open to her is hatred... And she would rather die than to embrace the Darkness as this Dark One is trying to force her into. NO! She will endure this! Sobbing, she feels the light strengthening her somehow, even through the black wall..... As though someone is holding her hand... Taking her pain. Tears stream down her face and she lifts her head seeing through blurred vision, this man this .. tormentor of her soul that now backs away from her as he watches her agony and pain.~

~The pain, previously located inher hands and feet where the nails were driven into her for the purpose of holding her to the wall, now adds as there is suddenly a crown of thorns upon her head. Yet this crown is different than that of old for this one is made of metal barbed wire. The mettalic 'thorns' sink into her epidermis causeing blood to drip down her face.~

~The Dark Man extends a hand and grins maniacally. From that palm sprouts Sith Lightning which arcs towards her and into her though seems to not enter her from the front. Instead she feels the unique feeling of a whip assault her flesh. Rend her ribs. Adding to the agony she endures, yet she bears it without a true struggle with the darkness... she finds it honorable to experience what Adonai did.. to take his pain in a sense..~

~Her body is lashed by the tendrils of Darkness and the all too real wounds bleed freely. Her cries of pain have become detached form her body.. or rahter she no longer acknowledges the fact that she screams......~

~The lighnting whips stop and the Dark man drops his gauntleted palm, sending the final agony to her... Her pain redoubling as she is bodly torn from the stone wall, she lands on the floor the tears and blood mixing together...... what comfort feels she? none.. nothing at all.. and yet.. even that pain fades slightly, is that a glowing or is she halucinating? A man kneels beforeher etheral and brilliant, An angel, she thinks, To take me home to Adonai....~

~The man kneels and shakes his head speaking to her his voice melodious and peaceful.~

"Jade, you have endured well, you will survive this and more for Adonai is with you.. with the children you will bear one day. Fear not ... Karoly is protected.. And you, Jade, are chosen. Chosen for Adonai's table.. You will sit on his right side. With that the man stands letting go ofher hand.~

~When she looks up at the Dark Man once more, she does not notice the wound on her forehead and the crown of 'thorns' have been healed completely and in thier place.. on her forehead... is a glowing cross, the emblem of suffering and shame.. yet to any that follow Adonai it is the love of thier hearts.. He is the truth and the light,, the love and strength to continue .... what torment she will face and endure in the future will be nothing compared to the splendor that awaits her... If she dies.. she will die a jedi and all will see the splendor of Adonai.. her children.. they will shine as well.. She knows Adonai is with her.~

~The Dark Man is taken aback by this display.He remains standing before her, his palm outward. From that leather gloved palm the glove is suddenly ripped away, to bear his flesh to the air and to her eyes. And as she looks onto it, she sees a tickling river of blood flowing down and to splatter on the floor.~

~What is there for her eyes to see is a mark. On his palm she can see the exact inverse of the mark on her forehead. The bloodied gashes seemed to be burned about the edges, as if permantly seared into the flesh. It is a reverse cross, looking almost like a sword…or more precisely, a Sith Sword.~

~Jade's eyes become glued to that image of the inverted cross... and just as suddenly as it started.. the vision ends.~

~The Jedi Master finds herself once more in the ruins of the Temple of Adonai....the Alter is before her and she finds she is on one knee before it. That was the mst vivid vision she has ever had.....~

~She makes her way out of the Temple and into her ship. There ws much to meditate upon. Each aspect in the vision was emblazoned into Jade's mind.. and her wrists, ankles and back ached as though she had really lived it. perhaps her answers lie in the man with the inverted cross on his right palm......~